Chapter 4

Once they were sat down and the orders for drinks had been taken, Sami started to talk straight away.

"Wow, I didn't think we'd be going somewhere as fancy as this" she wondered. Noticing the strange expression on Grit's face, she could tell that he wasn't used to this kind of atmosphere. "You look pretty bewildered by it all"

Grit, quickly noticing that his eyes were wandering around the room, turned his attention towards Sami.

"Yeah…" he said quietly. "I ain't used to these kinds of places. I'm more of a bar guy"

"Me too" Sami agreed, leaning her elbows on the table. She cupped her hands together and sat her head upon them. "Nothing beats beers with the soldiers after a good fight, eh?"

This was strange, Grit thought. Sami appeared somewhat enthusiastic by the whole thing. He himself was still feeling nervous by the whole idea of a date; the familiar feelings of hesitation when he was confronted with the idea were resurfacing in his head. He had the idea of going to the toilet and waiting there, but even Grit knew that it would be rude to leave your date hanging.

He cursed himself silently. Grit couldn't understand why he was feeling frustrated already. It had been ages since he was last on a date. Back then he was younger, even more carefree. Looking at Sami, who was still in her relaxed state, he started to think of the questions that bobbed about in his mind. How come she was so relaxed? Surely it was Sami who was supposed to be nervous? Did his breath smell? Did he just smell in general?

Realizing that he hadn't said anything in a while, Grit quickly thought of something to talk about. Quickly scanning his eyes around, he could only think of one question.

"You go on a lot of dates?" he asked. Sami perched herself back up in her seat, just as perky as before.

"When I get the time, yeah" she answered. "I like them, even if it's just with a friend, you get to know a lot about people"

Shuffling in his seat, he watched as Sami continued to speak. "How about you?"

"I ain't usually the kind for datin'" he explained. "Last date I went on…hmm…was a long time ago now. Back in my Orange Star days"

"Was that with Nell?" Sami asked. Grit silently wished that the name hadn't come up already, although he had expected it. Sighing, he twitched his face a little and rubbed his nose, discomforted by the name. Sami noticed this straight away.

"Oh…I'm sorry" she said quietly. "Is it not something you like talking about?"

Grit waved his hand to pardon Sami.

"It's fine" he replied, urging a smile. "You didn't mean no harm by it"

This was going awkwardly, Grit thought. A few minutes in and the apologies and forgiveness were already coming out. Just in time, the waiter arrived with the drinks.

"The house beer for you" the waiter said, handing a full, clear, amber pint glass to Sami. "And the Desperados for you, sir" The waiter placed the bottle next to Grit. "I shall be back momentarily to take your orders. Enjoy"

As the waiter left, Grit took a firm grip on his bottle.

"Heh, they speak so fancy here" Grit mumbled to himself. "An 'I'll be back' woulda done fine" He watched as Sami took hold of her pint glass, her hand looking delicate against it. To the common eye, it would have gone unnoticed, but Grit quickly noticed the thin silver ring on Sami's middle finger.

"Well, cheers" Sami toasted.

"To a good night" Grit added. Clinking glasses, they drank their respective beverages. Placing his bottle down, Grit's eyes quickly noticed the lip print left on the edge of Sami's pint glass. A small wave of nerves washed over Grit, sending a shiver down his spine. Sometimes he wished his eyesight wasn't so good.

"I gotta say…" Grit started, catching Sami's attention straight away. "…I didn't think you'd be the kinda girl who was into drinkin' beer and such"

A look of intrigue broke across Sami's face as Grit question hit home.

"Really?" she asked. "How come?" Grit gulped, why did he feel like he was being put on the spot?

"Well…you just don't look it" Grit explained haphazardly. An image came into Grit's head, solving his awkward explanation. "Like, y'know Jess? Now she looks like a gal who enjoys all the powerful drinks. No offense to her, or you either for that matter"

Sami started to giggle a little, prompting Grit to chuckle a little as well. As he sipped his beer, Sami cleared her throat in a very ladylike manner.

"None taken" she answered. "I'm used to it. When you're a girl in the army, the guys tend to get a bit iffy around you. You just have to show 'em you got what it takes to be hang with them. I could beat up half the guys in the squadron back home anyhow. I'd probably drink the rest under the table"

The waiter reappeared, ready to take the pair's orders. It was at this moment that Grit realized he hadn't even glanced at the food menu. The waiter turned to him.

"What shall you have, sir?" he asked. Quickly, Grit looked at Sami, opening his menu.

"You go first, I just need to peek at somethin'" he said quickly. Obliging, Sami started to make her order whilst Grit hurriedly looked at the menu. To his horror, most of the food was in French, a language he couldn't understand to save his life. As he looked, a sense of relief filled him when he spotted the steak in the main course list. Grit was a big fan of steaks, and if he could have the date his way, they would be in a steakhouse, eating away. All he needed to do was get the starter right. But before he could make an educated guess at some of the choices, the waiter turned to him.

"And yourself, sir?" he asked. It was time for an impulse decision.

"Uh…I'll start with the pow-let" he said. Suddenly, Sami started to giggle as the waiter's face twitched slightly.

"…The poulet" he corrected, writing the order down. "And for main course?"

Embarrassed by the mispronunciation, Grit cleared his throat.

"Steak" he said quickly, leaving no room for misinterpretation.

"Excellent choice, sir" the waiter said. "How would you like it cooked?"

"Uh…medium rare" Grit answered, the temperature beneath his collar soaring to unbelievable levels after his blunder. He could feel the sweat congregating beneath his armpits due to the little incident. The waiter completed noting down the order and promptly left. Anxious, Grit swiftly turned his head back towards Sami.

"What?" he asked, clearly flustered by what had happened.

"Nothing" Sami said, suppressing her laughter. "It's just how you mispronounced 'chicken' in French"

"Chicken?" Grit asked. "That's what I ordered?" As Sami confirmed his query, all Grit could do in response was drink some more of his beer. The bottle of Desperados was almost empty already. Grit felt like chugging as much beer as he could to calm himself down.